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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bark · chair · content · season · pitcher · wind · pass · bowl

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. pass — a permit
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. chair — a leader
  14. season — of the year
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. content — the amount
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. season — in sport
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. content — happy
  23. bark — to shout
  24. season — to add flavour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com